JMFC URGED TO RECUSE FROM HEARING COMPLAINT AGAINST PANJIM PI

PANJIM: Adv. Aires Rodrigues today urged Panjim Judicial Magistrate First Class Ms Shaikh Shabnam to recuse herself from hearing the complaint filed by him against now suspended Panjim Police Inspector Sandesh Chodankar.

When the matter came up for hearing today Adv. Aires Rodrigues submitted before JMFC Shabnam that it would not be proper for her to hear the matter as her husband also a Police Inspector Mr. Salim Shaikh was a batch mate and a close friend of Inspector Sandesh Chodankar.

Adv. Rodrigues further submitted that the matter be placed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate to be assigned to another Judge. After hearing Adv. Aires Rodrigues, JMFC Shaikh Shabnam stated that she would pronounce her order on this issue on 1st March at 10 am.

Adv. Aires Rodrigues has filed the complaint against Inspector Sandesh Chodankar for not registering an F.I.R of cheating and misrepresentation against the former Union Law Minister and current Goa Law Commission Chairman Mr. Ramakant Khalap.

The notice to the Police Inspector was issued on a petition filed by Adv. Rodrigues before the JMFC seeking directions to the Panjim Police Inspector to register the F.I.R against Mr. Ramakant Khalap and to expeditiously investigate the case.

Stating that the police had not registered the F.I.R in view of the political clout enjoyed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap, Adv. Rodrigues has sought that the Court monitor the investigation of the case.

Adv. Rodrigues on January 17th had filed a complaint at the Panjim Police Station against Mr. Ramakant Khalap for having falsely stated that the International Arbitration Centre was being set up in collaboration with the Goa Government.

In his complaint to the Panjim Police Adv. Aires Rodrigues has also named as accused Adv. Cleofato Coutinho, Adv. Mario Pinto Almeida and Mr. V.K.Agarwal who are the other trustees of a private trust “Goa Organization of Law Finance and Education” formed by them along with Mr. Ramakant Khalap.

After Mr. Ramakant Khalap announced that the International Arbitration Centre was being set up by his private trust in collaboration with the Government of Goa, Adv. Rodrigues sought information under RTI from the Law Department whether the Government was infact aware that the said International Arbitration Centre was being set up in collaboration with the Government of Goa.

The Law Department while informing Adv. Rodrigues that it had no information on the setting up of the International Arbitration centre has also informed him that no action has yet been initiated against the trust headed by Mr. Ramakant Khalap for illegally and unauthorizedly using the name of the Government as a collaborator in the setting up of the trust.

The International Arbitration Centre has been set up by a private trust set up by Goa Law Commission Chairman Ramakant Khalap along with commission members Adv. Cleofato Coutinho and Adv. Mario Pinto Almeida. The fourth member of the trust is one Mr. V.K.Agarwal from Delhi.